Way back in 2005, only a few months after I joined the OSNews team, I interviewed Wim Schermer, founder and then-owner of the largest chain of Apple "Premium Reseller" stores in The Netherlands, MacSupport (now iCentre). In fact, Wim Schermer was the first Dutchman to buy a Macintosh - the original Macintosh, that is - in The Netherlands, and went on to start his Apple reseller business in 1988. While the interview covered many aspects, one thing always stuck with me: Schermer was concerned about what would happen to his business if Apple were to open an official Apple Store in The Netherlands. Seven years later, his concerns are becoming reality.

My first Mac Book Pro in 2006 or 2007. I wanted to puchase it with the memory maxed out. The sales associate told me to buy the cheaper version and purchase the memory from Crucial. Saved me a bunch.

You're not kidding it saved you a bunch. I remember looking at the prices of Macs with fully spec'd RAM about that sort of time (don't know if it is still the case) - Apple's markup on the RAM was astronomical.

I hope Apple value that sales person and his(?) great customer service. It's that sort of customer service that keeps me coming back. Sure they would have made more money in the short term on the RAM, but I bet you'd have thought twice about buying an Apple again if you found out you had been ripped off.